A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series (Dialogue 1, Part 1) – The Diamond Approach: A Unique Blend of Psychology and Spirituality, Creating a Path of Endless Discoveries and Awakenings

A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series Hameed Ali Diamond Approach Path of Awakening

In this rich and engaging conversation, the first episode of the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, Hameed Ali gives us a beautiful overview of the Diamond Approach, which is a brilliant integration of teachings and a path of awakening born out of his own direct experience and informed by his deep understanding of the world’s great spiritual traditions and modern psychology. Here, Hameed details the many facets of the Diamond Approach that make it unique among spiritual paths, which leads down several intriguing avenues of exploration: What is the Diamond Approach’s understanding of the soul? How does spiritual guidance work? What are the four turnings that give context and structure to students on this spiritual path? Hameed delves, too, into the importance of inquiry on our road to discovering our true nature, love’s role in allowing us to trust reality, and the importance of realizing that the ultimate lives within each individual.

Hameed also shares personal aspects of his journey: how he was guided from the precise field of physics to the field of psychology, how he came to the revelation of the human soul, and what he attributes to why he has been so receptive to spiritual openings and realizations throughout his life. The Diamond Approach is not only about discovering the nature of absolute reality—it is also about realizing ultimate consciousness in ordinary life, to experience the beauty and richness of a life lived in simple freedom and enjoyment. As Hameed says, “Know, by engaging the path, it is possible to be free.” Recorded June 13, 2024.

“Regardless of how transcendent or vast, nondual or whatever, is the ultimate nature, the important thing is how it lives as an individual human being living an ordinary human life and enjoying this life the way it can be enjoyed—to the fullest of its possibilities.”

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Topics & Time Stamps – Part 1

  • Introducing the A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series, exploring the complete path of awakening developed by Hameed Ali—the Diamond Approach (01:06)
  • John speaks to how this podcast series is based on Hameed’s life’s work, summarized in his transformative book The Inner Journey Home (04:46)
  • The Inner Journey Home: a brilliant integration of teachings as well as a first person account of divine grace (07:34)
  • What is the Diamond Approach and why is it unique? (09:34)
  • The inner body is the lens that, as it turns, sees reality in a different way and reveals different teachings (12:13)
  • The Diamond Approach recognizes the validity of many different spiritual traditions and that there are multiple possible realizations (15:00)
  • After a Nyingma empowerment workshop, Hameed realized a different universe than the Dzogchen universe (16:28)
  • How does spiritual guidance work? It guides the consciousness in how to be open to the next revelation (17:25)
  • A universal commonality the Diamond Approach has with all spiritual teachings is that there is a true spiritual nature to all being, all life (18:44)
  • The Diamond Approach emphasizes that this life has its own value  (21:37)
  • The individual is not an illusion—the human soul is an expression of fundamental reality manifesting as individual consciousness (24:07)
  • Spiritual realization can’t happen without a human being to experience it (26:46)
  • What is the Diamond Approach’s understanding of the soul? (27:32)
  • Hameed discovered the soul later in the teachings—after the true nature of fundamental consciousness and the absolute (30:28)

Resources & References – Part 1

A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series The Inner Journey Home

The A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series will generally follow the sequence of Hameed’s magnum opus, The Inner Journey Home* (which John describes as “psychoactive and spiritually, psychologically, and intellectually transformative”), so listeners may want to get a copy of this book, to study and follow along on this exhilarating path of awakening.

* As an Amazon Associate, Deep Transformation earns from qualifying purchases.


Embodying the Divine Animal, A Diamond Approach Course — Begins October 12, 2024

Ridhwan School Course Diamond Approach Embodying the Divine Animal

Experience the body’s potential to fulfill our lives as individual souls and serve as a conduit for presence in the world in this 3-part exploration taught by longtime Diamond Approach teachers Linda Krier and Jessica Britt. Learn how each of the primal instincts—social, sexual, and survival—live in your body now and are an essential part of responding to life as a fully embodied divine animal. As we inquire into our physicality, we discover that the vehicle of our body is a powerful location of support, a conduit for presence, and a precious, vibrant manifestation of the individual soul. Learn more.


A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series Hameed Ali Diamond Approach Path of Awakening

A. Hameed Ali (A. H. Almaas) was born in Kuwait in 1944. At the age of eighteen, he moved to the U.S. to study at the University of California in Berkeley. Hameed was working on his Ph.D. in physics when he reached a turning point in his life and destiny that led him to inquire into the psychological and spiritual aspects of human nature rather than the physical nature of the universe. He left the academic world to pursue an in-depth journey of inner discovery, applying his scientific precision and discipline to personal, experiential research. This included study with different teachers in different modalities, extensive reading, and continuous study of his own consciousness in an effort to understand the essential nature of human experience and reality in general.

Hameed’s process of exploration led to the creation of the Ridhwan School and, with his colleague Karen Johnson, resulted in the founding and unfoldment of the Diamond Approach. He is the author of 20 books, including Nondual Love: Awakening to the Loving Nature of Reality, Love Unveiled: Discovering the Essence of the Awakened Heart, Keys to the Enneagram: How to Unlock the Highest Potential of Every Personality Type, The Unfolding Now: Realizing Your True Nature through the Practice of Presence, and more. 


Podcast produced by Vanessa Santos and Show Notes by Heidi Mitchell


Besides his passion for getting the invaluable conversations on the Deep Transformation Podcast out to the world, co-host John Dupuy is also dedicated to encouraging the use of brainwave entrainment technology for its transformative effects. John has been working personally and professionally with brainwave entrainment technology since 2004, and in 2010, he co-founded iAwake Technologies to help create high quality soundtracks using this technology, which supports the healing of emotional/shadow issues, deepens meditation, mental focus, creativity, and flow states, and enhances a daily integral transformative practice.

To experience the effects for yourself, you can download a free sample of the Stealing Flow Warm-up track here, for a 25-minute, full-spectrum, whole-brain workoutWe hope you enjoy it!